Six Flags 2010

We had a family day at Six Flags while we were visiting P.K. This was our third trip to Six Flags with the kids. We went last summer and about three years ago. This was the best trip by far. Hannah was tall enough to ride almost everything she wanted to ride and Aaron wasn't afraid to ride anything. Those two facts made for happy kids and thus happy parents.

Rachel has loved "high and fast" rides since her first trip to Disneyland at age 4. That child will ride just about anything. I, on the other hand, am generally happy to hold stuff and people watch. Anything that combines fast and spinny makes me sick to my stomach and I am terrified of heights. So to keep Mommy happy and to make me feel apart of the fun everyone agreed to that we should ride the carousel first.

P.K. and me enjoying the carousel. Yes. This was a no make-up day.

This is me posing with the kids before the ride started.

This was my favorite ride. It was called the Buccaneer something-or-other. It was a leisurely ride on pirate boats that had four water cannons mounted on each side. As you floated past people watching from the sidewalk you could squirt them with the cannons, but they could also squirt you.

Hannah was so excited to finally be tall enough to ride the swings.

This was one of P.K.'s favorite spots. He talked about it for days before we went just like the kids do.

This was one of the coolest activities ever! We had to pay separately from the regular admission price, but it was well worth it. We being P.K. and the kids...note the aforementioned fear of heights...spent over an hour climbing around.

It took Aaron a while to decide it was safe, but once he felt secure he had a blast.

The girl in the light blue shirt in these two shots is Rachel. She went all over all by herself. No fear.

All the kids, big and little, got harnessed up.

Hannah wouldn't get too far from P.K. or the man working, but she wasn't about to quit.

I rode the equivalent of the Teacups at Disney with the girls. You sit in a car that spins independently while the ride spins. You can turn a wheel in the middle to make your individual car spin faster. I am not afraid to ride this particular ride, but I remembered afterward that those kind of rides make me feel sick.

The kids love to watch Scooby Doo so they were thrilled to have their picture taken with Shaggy. I know our days of having Rachel pose with characters willingly are very numbered. I was surprised she jumped in this one without any pleas or threats from the parental units.

Rachel wanted to stop for a picture with these Tasmanian Devil statues on the way out. Oh! Wait a minute. The one in pink is just Hannah. Sometimes it is hard to tell.

One of the joys of having a digital camera is you can waste shots. P.K. took this one on the way in so we could easily remember where we parked. What a smart man!

We had such a great time that P.K. said we should get season passes next year. We have a Six Flags not too far from where we live.

Hair Today...Gone Tomorrow

While we were on our road trip the girls got haircuts. Rachel's is at her shoulders and has layers. It is how she had it cut before so really no new changes there. However, Hannah wanted a drastic change.

I did call P.K. before I let her go through with it. Then I texted him pictures as we progressed. I didn't take an immediate after picture with my camera, but I did text P.K. His response, "I changed my mind."

My cousin set next to me saying, "Don't do it" over and over again.

Hannah did come out of it with straight hair. All those curls are gone. I knew she didn't have as much curl as Rachel, but I thought once some of the weight was off they would bounce back.

Stay tuned for back to school pictures to see the finished product.

Road Trip I Spy

I spied with my little eye (and maybe my heart)...

...a follower of Changing Seasons, former backyard neighbor and the lady who is responsible for my coffee addiction, Jen. It was so good to catch up with you. I love ya to pieces!

...Jen's daughter and one of Rachel's best friends, Anna. Rachel is friends with a few of my friends' daughters. I always wonder if those relationships are because Rachel and the other girl really click or just because the moms have engineered the friendship. Rachel and Anna picked up where they left off. The next day Rachel told me out of nowhere, "I really miss Anna." That is a friendship of choice.

...another former neighbor and her husband who is still stationed at Naval Station Great Lakes.

...the former neighbor's seven children and Jen's three.

...a very surpised girl who opened her front door to find a long lost friend. Her mom may be just as responsible for my coffee addiction and the one who started this blogging craze. That visit was way too fast. Here's to next year.

...my dear friend Theresa. She and her hubby were gracious enough to meet us after lunch at Red Robin. Red Robin was one of our favorite restaurants in Indiana. Theresa is a very loyal blog follower and she will NOT be happy to see herself on here. Theresa...I'm so glad we got to visit for a while! I miss you!

...cousins

...more cousins and a couple friends

...this ol' house...so full of memories. It looks so much smaller than I remember.

...my friend Becizzle, her husband Matt and their baby. We saw their daughter Allison, too. However I don't have any pictures of her. It was a quick visit. They made me a delicious pizza using olive oil, ricotta cheese and mozzarella. Yummy!

I also spied my friend Candace and her two sweet kids. I just didn't spy them with my camera.

I love playing I Spy!

We Love Our Sailor

We made the trek up to Great Lakes the end of last weekend to spend some time with P.K. We arrived in the early afternoon in time to get a new base sticker for my car. I took a rock to my windshield a while back and had to have it replaced. I don't have a need to go on a base very often, but it is nice to be back in the club. We also took Rachel to get her first military i.d. Turning 10 is a huge milestone for military kids because they too get to have a military i.d. However, at least in this family, the 10 year old is not going to carry her own i.d.

I caught this group hug when P.K. arrived in the parking lot.

After we got the stickers and i.d.s out of the way, P.K. took us around the recruit side of the base. When we were stationed here, that area was a huge mystery. It is where new recruits go for boot camp. The area is pretty heavily restricted. Since P.K. was a chaplain for the recruits he didn't even have access to that part of the base. But now, he is over on that side. This is a monument outside of the recruit chapel.

P.K. and the kids outside the recruit chapel.

I'll have to take and post some pictures of the main base. There are some beautiful historic brick buildings there. Our time there was before I started the blog, so it would be nice to have them on here.

After our tour, we jumped right into more family time. There is a nice outlet mall nearby with a little reptile zoo. We had to take our snake lover through.

Aaron with an anaconda.

P.K. was taken with this huge Burmese python. This one is actually larger than what would typically be found in the wild because she is fed regularly and can laze around. In the wild she would have to search large areas for food and would only be able to eat when she found prey.

P.K. and me with an albino Nile crocodile.

The kids with an alligator. Notice their matching Navy shirts. It was their idea to wear them when they got to see Daddy. I have one too, but I declined the invitation to match my kiddos.

Is God Fat and Daddy Loves Crosses

My niece, Bethanie, is visiting us for the summer. She is 9. At church on Sunday Rachel was sitting on my right and Bethanie was on the other side of her. The visiting speaker was talking about the idols we have in our lives. He mentioned a portion of scripture in the Bible that says if all the nations were gathered and placed on a scale with God on the other side of the scale, the nations would weigh as dust compared to God. I don't remember the scripture reference. The speaker was basically telling us that God is greater than anything we could imagine. All four of the kids were coloring so I didn't even think they were paying attention. Bethanie leans across Rachel and in a very offended less than quiet church tone asks me, "Is he calling God fat?" I had to bite my tongue to keep from laughing out loud.

The last couple of days Hannah has been drawing her dream house which will include a personalized guest room for each of us. Today she was showing me what the room she has designed for PK and me will look like. It has a sign that reads, "Navy King and Queen" and a window all the way across the top so we can lay in bed and look at the stars. Then the bed has a big cross on it. I asked her, "Is that because we love Jesus?" She said, "Well, Daddy loves crosses, but you love Jesus."

Where Did the Time Go?

I know. It has been over a month since I've updated the blog. A big shout out to my friend, Laurie, for letting me know I need to update! It is so good to have fans! Here is a quick summary of the last month.

We moved into the new house on June 8 and jumped right into unpacking. PK left on June 16 to go to Naval Station Great Lakes until the middle of September. That gave us about a week to accomplish as many tasks as possible around the house before he left. We ran errands and worked from dawn to dusk every day and went to bed feeling like we had been run over by a truck. PK bought me a new computer and a treadmill before he left. Sad to say, the computer has seen more action than the treadmill.

We hired a contractor to finish the partial basement. I'll post before and after pictures later as I still need to paint and get someone to put in carpet.

My dad and his wife came to visit the last few days of June. They brought my nine year old niece, Bethanie, with them. She is going to be spending time with us until the kids and I go see PK toward the end of July. We hiked Kennesaw Mountain. The last time my dad came it was a rainy day and he was very disappointed that I didn't want to hike the mountain in the mud. About half way up is a great look out spot. We stopped to rest and enjoy the view.

The kids went to scout ahead. When they returned Hannah brought me my camera and told me she couldn't get it to close. She had been stopping to take pictures of EVERY SINGLE DADDY LONG LEG we had passed on the trail. Trust me. There were tons.

I said, "Oh. The batteries are probably dead. I'm sorry but you got to take lots of pictures." She said, "Or it could be when I fell on that rock." Nice. Needless to say we were camera-less for a few days.

My mom and her husband came to visit 4th of July weekend. They were here during the period of camera-less-ness so I don't have any pictures of them A lot of the festivities around here were held on July 3 as the 4th was on a Sunday this year. I really do like living in the Bible Belt. I took the kids to a 4th of July parade early Saturday and Mom and Jim arrived just after lunch. We went to walk around Marietta Square for a while and then went to watch the fireworks. Mom and Jim bought the kids some fireworks which we set off the night of July 4th. Jim fixed my lawnmower for me and then mowed the entire yard. Yeah! We spent one day cleaning up the backyard. I'm still amazed at the amount of trash the previous owners left out there. Mom and Hannah cleaned out the yard barn which Hannah has claimed as her play house since she first saw it.

We adopted a dog and then returned him a couple days later. He was a lab/bassett mix. He looked like a black lab with those short little bassett legs.


He was a year old and overall a good dog. The kids loved him, but I learned that I am just not a dog person. Hannah and I both cried when we returned him, but I think it was the best decision for us. I told the kids they can have any small caged pet they want after we make the trip to Illinois.

Now we are on the countdown until we leave to go see PK. We will be dropping Bethanie back home in Indiana on the way. We have loved having her here and will miss her. We are going to see a couple of friends on our trip and I can hardly wait.

Be It Ever So Humble...

it will eventually feel like home! I know. That is not the way the saying goes. However, PK and I closed on our first house yesterday. We have been married sixteen years and this is the first house that belongs to us. Well, as my dear hubby said yesterday in a way that he found funny, "It belongs to the bank, but we can call it ours."

We have rented, lived in student housing, base housing and a parsonage. We have called many places "home." I know all too well the feeling of moving into a new house and knowing it is the place we will live, but it takes a while for it to feel like home. Right now the "new" house is an empty shell (other than some junk the previous owners didn't quite get out). I long for the day when we have spent some time away and walk through the doors and I am overcome by that sense of peace that screams, "Ahhhh! Home! Kick off your shoes and relax!"

When we lived in California (those "when we lived in California" stories are starting to sound like the "when I was a kid we walked three miles in the snow, barefoot to get to the outhouse" kind of stories) we were living in base housing and due to some changes we were being moved to different quarters on the other side of the base. I remember telling one of my friends that it didn't seem like home. She said, "Bake something. Baking cookies will make it seem more like home." I don't think she used the word "homemade" but that is the way I heard it. I've repeated those words to myself with each new move since then.

I'm not sure it is the smell of fresh baked cookies that make it smell like home, but rather the steps it takes to get there that make it seem more like home. One does not walk into the empty shell of a house and whip up homemade cookies or even a decent meal. The kitchen needs to be unpacked and organized. That is always my first step in unpacking. Once the kitchen is in working order, I feel like the rest of the house can come together. After all, isn't the kitchen the heart of the home?

In my house, little hands will surely be there to help make and eat those cookies. It is the beginning of making memories in a new house. Perhaps the act of making memories is the beginning of making it home.

I have made it a point to do a final walk through of each place we have lived after it is empty and the last thing to do is drive away. I'm not looking for anything left behind. PK's OCD tendencies take care of that. I'm doing a walk through and letting the memories of each room flash through my mind. The memories are still photographs in my mind. The ones I will never forget...

I love traditions and I have been very careful to build those into our lives. As we circle through the first year in the new house and put those traditions to practice we will build lasting memories and before I know it I will walk through the new door and something inside of me will scream, "Ahhhh! Home! Kick off your shoes and relax!"

Our new house

Aaron at the front door

From the dining room looking past the front door into the living room

Aaron by the fireplace in the living room

Other end of the living room looking toward the dining room

Dining room

Heading upstairs

Upstairs in front of Aaron's room

Top of the stairs...Aaron's room on the right...girls' room on the left

Looking back down

Dining room into the kitchen

Kitchen

Kitchen

Back to the island looking at the bay window and window seat with STORAGE

Aaron found this rope on the tree in the front yard

Monkey see Monkey do